A Curious Notion: What is the Perfect Trojan Horse?

I am amazed that very few people are willing to express their displeasure, disappointment, disapproval, and disgust in a meaningful way with the unabashed willingness of some politicians to use the things that are important bulwarks of faith and patriotism to only spread the politics of disaffection, panic, fear, and xenophobia. Is this a Trojan Horse to redirect the ill will that does exist in the people of this great land?

It is a Curious Notion that a nation that was founded upon fearlessness, boldness, inventiveness, education, equality, and fairness as a general principle can be so easily returned to all the negative aspects of the guilded age, an age when the greed of the wealthy, and the “Dickensian” fears of the poor and downtrodden ruled the day. Why are we not pushing for a more educated and confident populous? Why aren’t we striving to have a more informed citizenry actively participating in their shared heritage of democracy? Why is there a tone of racist obstinance in our government to the first minority chief executive in our checkered history, rather than truly trying to establish a post racial society, in such an “advanced country”? What has caused the wealthy and well to do to lose their pride in doing what they can to invest and uplift their fellow countrymen, especially when we are in such dire times? Why wouldn’t they, above all others understand that when the lower classes have more income they spend it much more readily than the privileged, thus creating both demand and more employment?

There are those that spend an inordinate amount of time crowing about “American exceptionalism”. I won’t ask what that is; because what it draws us inextricably into is a deceptive deviation and an argument that leads to pointless jingoistic rhetoric but, I will ask where is it? Where is the demonstrata? What are we all collectively doing to prove that WE are a great people? Are we still resting upon the faded laurels of an increasingly bygone generation, a generation whose apex was the 1940’s or 50’s? Why are we all so distracted with the drumbeats of religious intolerance and antiquated McCarthyism in a country whose first amendment in its unique “bill of rights” guarantees freedom of worship? What happened to the generation that wanted to promote love and brotherhood? Did they become addicted to profits? I do not mean to question the greatness of what my country has been but, I am confused about just how my countrymen see themselves in the now and moving forward in the near future?

Why are we unwittingly destroying our only home planet? Why are we as citizens so willing to accept an incompetent congress to represent us? Why are we so willing to accept a Supreme Court decision that allows the money of large corporations to so obviously overcome the will of the citizens, if “equal justice for all” is their motto? Why are there lobbyists at all “if” corporations are people? Why after four years, has no one still been prosecuted for nearly crashing the national economy in the name of CEO bonuses and corporate greed? Why are we tolerating politicians that care more about reelection, political stalemate, fear mongering and social engineering rather than working together to rehabilitate the state of the nation? How does an electoral mandate for jobs become free rein to run roughshod in an attack on the reproductive rights of women when 98% of them use birth control at some point? Why with two of the twentieth century’s “boogie men” dead and gone can’t we end a decade long war and bring home our war weary soldiers? Lastly with so much obviously to be done, why in an election year is nobody talking about anything pertinent?

My guess is because our problems seem so intractable, that it is far easier for our timid, lazy, and self-involved politicians to find a Trojan Horse to use for blame and collective misdirection than to work together to inspire and lead an educated, honorable, confident, and involved people to overcome our current problems. Comment if you will.